One
of the reasons why I started this blog and the Italian Food, Wine &
Travel group was not only to educate about Italian wines, but open eyes
to the wide variety of what Italy has to offer. I live for trying the
lesser known varieties from some of the obscure regions. These native
grapes are just not always that easy to find. Hopefully this month’s
theme on exploring lesser known wine regions will allow you to think
twice about purchasing what you’re comfortable with and get you to try
something outside the box. You may just be surprised!
I was planning on featuring the tintilia
grape of Molise, but in staying true to what I believe in I won’t share
wines that I do not personally enjoy. Plus, I think the wine I tried
was just off. It doesn’t happen that often and I dislike missing out on
an opportunity to educate, but I have featured other wines from tintilia that you can read up on.
Instead, we’re traveling to Le Marche wine region featuring sangiovese. Even though sangiovese
is quite the popular grape of Italy I don’t think the wines of Le
Marche get enough attention that they deserve. I’ve always enjoyed the verdicchio white wines of Le Marche, but don’t drink the reds enough. Le Marche is almost balanced between red and white wine production leaning heavier towards the reds.
At
a recent tasting I tried some wines from Agricola La Canosa and enjoyed
their 2015 Nullius Marche IGT. I couldn’t find the exact establishment
of this winery, but I believe it’s relatively newer within the last 15
years. It was founded by Riccardo Reina. The winery is situated in the
small town of Rotella with the Ascoli Piceno province in southern
Marche. Located right within the National Park of the Sibillini
Mountains. It’s named after one of the four castles, Poggio Canoso, of the area.
The Wine
2015 La Canosa Nullius Marche IGT – This wine is made of 100% sangiovese. It’s aged for 1 year partially in tonneaux and partially in barriques (1st and 2nd
passage). It then spends another 6-8 months in the bottle. The grapes
are sourced from the highest altitude vineyards on the property. Per
La Canosa’s website, the name of the wine, nullius, stems from the “latin expression “Nullius Diocesis”,
used for indicating the religious autonomy of a town, literally “not
belonging to any diocese”. To have religious autonomy at the time of the
Pontifical State, which our region was part of, was synonymous of great
character, strength, obstinacy and pride for the townspeople.” They
believe this sangiovese
represents the strength of the townspeople and for me that was
prevalent in the firm tannins. Medium to fuller-bodied rich in spice
and red fruits. ABV 13.5% SRP $30
Take a look below at all the great ideas for exploring Italy from the comfort of your own home. If you see this soon enough, please join our chat on Twitter at #ItalianFWT on Saturday, December 7th at 11:00am EST. We will be taking you all over Italy. We hope you can join.
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- Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Cam brings "Italy Meets Argentina: Empanadas de Carne + Azienda Bisceglia Terra di Vulcano Aglianico del Vulture 2016"
- Gwen from Wine Predator joins with "3 Surprising Sparklers from Emilia Romagna’s Terramossa #ItalianFWT"
- Cindy from Grape Experiences will post "Montecucco – An Obscure, Delicious Slice of Tuscany"
- Linda from My Full Wine Glass writes about "Discovering Torrette from Tiny Valle d'Aosta."
I have never had a red from Le Marche! Thanks for reminding me Sangiovese exists there and that I should try one ASAP!
ReplyDeleteI have so much to learn about Italy and all of the world outside of these United States. It is one of the reasons I love this group so much. A wealth of knowledge.
ReplyDeleteTrue, Sangiovese is used a lot also in Le Marche, an interesting article...I haven't tried this one though. Will look for the wine...:-)
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